Make The Garden Your Happy Place This Spring*

 

*This is a collaborative post*

Spring is here, and with it hopefully the chance to spend a few days in the garden pottering about and enjoying the sunshine to the sound of birdsong. It doesn’t matter how humble one’s garden is, (mine has often been likened to a postage stamp in terms of it’s quite unimpressive scale; but the amount of peace and solace, the sense of stress relief and general goodness it fills me with is worth more than any man-made notions of qualitative scale.

The postage stamp seems to be the stomping ground this spring, for a family of three or four Hedgehogs, a bees nest and a nosy fox who is often drawn in by the alluring aroma of cooked meets wafting through the neighbourhood. I’ve counted 60 plus Starlings at one sitting for dinner, we have a couple of lovely Wrens (Britain’s lightest/smallest bird) which love to scamper amongst floor of the flowerbeds but who remain a little more on the timid side. Being situated by the coast we cannot avoid the Seagulls, but usually after having had their fill, they wander off looking for some wind and rainswept citizen fighting their way down the promenade while clumsily scattering chips along his way.

The apparently omnipresent Pigeons face some fierce competition for the seed and food left out. Song thrushes, Sparrows, Wagtails, Blue Tits, Goldfinches, Coal Tits, Robins, Green Tits, and Black Birds amongst others, all endeavour to grab their full share of the “loot” with undistinguishable fervour. You can hear the “peck, peck, pecking” of a woodpecker somewhere close by but we haven’t seen it yet. Magpies, some Crows, Rooks and the occasional Sparrow Hawk do their best to scare the smaller birds away. But so far to no avail. We also happen to be on the flight path for a flock of geese, so morning and evening one can hear their boisterous calls as 50-100 of them migrate a few hundred feet above.

The daffodils are out with their usual exuberant flourish, and the dusky hue of the plentiful Bluebells create a scene you might find reminiscent of some beautiful summer meadow, albeit a micro version. It’s the perfect time of year for those with green fingers to start getting the garden into order after the long Winter months, time to don the gloves and start de-weeding the beds, sewing some seed and planting some bulbs.

Watering your flora and fauna is obviously a crucial element of ensuring they grow and flourish and the easiest way to do this is by using a garden hose. A good rule of thumb is to give your plants about 2.5cm/one inch of water every seven to ten days. There are all kinds of tools and contraptions for the gardener. You can find some hose accessories such as garden spray guns and outside tap fixtures and fittings et al. In my opinion having a really good quality and sturdy garden Eley Hose Reels setup is crucial, it’s a much more efficient than using a watering can, and much easier ergonomically.

Some examples of relatively low maintenance plants which are ideal for novice or beginner gardens are as follows: Lavender, Hydrangeas, Geraniums, Day Lilies, ornamental grasses and Dahlias. It is also important to keep on top of weeds, they will spring up even in the most well-tended and cultivated garden. But it’s best to not let them get to unruly and out of control.

Fertilizer is an integral component of growing a beautiful and healthy garden. Find a fertiliser which is compatible for your garden. A compost heap or even sourcing compost from the store will be a wise investment for your garden and give your plants every chance to grow from strength to strength. Also look up some tips on when best and how best to prune your plants, a quick search online will reveal the best times of year for whichever plants or shrubs you wish to grow in your own space.

*Photo source Pexels and Pixabay

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